220-44-020Coastal baitfish gear. It is unlawful to fish for or possess smelt, anchovies, candlefish, herring or pilchard taken for commercial purposes from Marine Fish-Shellfish Management and Catch Reporting Areas 58B, 59A, 59B, or 60A, except as provided for in this section.

(1)(a) It is unlawful to fish for or possess smelt taken for commercial purposes except by hand net gear not exceeding 72 inches maximum frame width. It is unlawful to take smelt for commercial purposes during weekly closed periods from 8:00 a.m. Friday to 8:00 a.m. Sunday.

(b) Licensing: A smelt dip bag net fishery license is the license required to operate the gear provided for in this section.

(c) Incidental catch: It is lawful to retain only anchovies and candlefish taken incidental to a lawful smelt fishery.

(2)(a) It is unlawful to fish for or possess candlefish or anchovies taken for commercial purposes with any gear except purse seine or lampara not exceeding 1,400 feet in length nor having mesh size less than 1/2 inch, or dip bag net not exceeding 72 inches maximum frame width.

(b) Licensing:

(i) A baitfish lampara fishery license is the license required to operate the lampara gear provided for in this section.

(ii) A baitfish purse seine fishery license is the license required to operate the purse seine gear provided for in this section.

(iii) A smelt dip bag net fishery license is the license required to operate the hand dip net gear provided for in this section.

(c) Incidental catch: It is lawful to retain only shad and pilchard taken incidental to a lawful anchovy or candlefish fishery. Pilchard may not exceed twenty-five percent of the weight of the landing. Any sturgeon must be released unharmed.

(3)(a) It is unlawful to fish for or possess herring or pilchard taken for commercial purposes except as authorized by permit issued by the director, except pilchard taken incidental to candlefish and anchovy.

(b) Licensing:

(i) An emerging commercial fishery license is the license for a permittee to fish for or retain pilchard.

220-44-030Coastal bottomfish gear. It is unlawful to take, fish for, possess, transport through the waters of the state or land in any Washington state ports, bottomfish taken for commercial purposes in Marine Fish-Shellfish Management and Catch Reporting Areas 59A, 59B, 60A-1 and 60A-2 and that portion of Area 58 within the United States 200-mile Fishery Conservation Zone with any gear except as provided in this section:

(1) Otter trawl and beam trawl.

(a) It is unlawful to use, operate or carry aboard any fishing vessel otter trawl gear having meshes measuring less than 3 inches anywhere in the net.

(b) It is unlawful to use or operate any bottom roller or bobbin trawl having meshes less than 4.5 inches anywhere in the net. Rollers, bobbins, or discs used in roller or bobbin trawls must be a minimum of 14 inches in diameter.

(c) It is unlawful to use or operate a pelagic trawl with meshes less than 3.0 inches anywhere in the net. Footropes of pelagic trawls must be less than 1.75 inches in diameter, including twine necessary for seizing material. Sweeplines, including the bottom leg of the bridle, must be bare.

(d) For at least 20 feet immediately behind the footrope or headrope, bare rope or mesh of 16-inch minimum mesh size must completely encircle the net. A band of mesh may encircle the net under transfer cables, lifting or splitting straps (chokers), but must be: Over riblines and restraining straps; the same mesh size and coincide knot-to-knot with the net to which it is attached; and no wider than 16 meshes.

(e) Chafing gear may encircle no more than 50 percent of the circumference of any bottom, roller, bobbin or pelagic trawl except as specified in (d) of this subsection. No section of chafing gear may be longer than 50 meshes of the net to which it is attached. Except at the corners, the terminal end of each section of chafing gear must not be connected to the net. Chafing gear must be attached outside any riblines and restraining straps. There is no limit on the number of sections of chafing gear on a net.

(f) It is unlawful to use double wall codends in any trawl gear.

(g) Licensing: A food fish trawl -- non-Puget Sound fishery license is the license required to operate the gear provided for in this section. Additionally a federal limited entry permit is required in Areas 59A, 59B, 60A-1 and 60A-2 and that portion of Area 58 within the Exclusive Economic Zone.

(h) Area restriction: It is unlawful to use otter trawl or beam trawl gear in state territorial waters (0-3 miles) within Areas 58A, 58B, 59A, 59B, 60A-1 or 60A-2.

(2) Set lines.

(a) It is unlawful for the operator of set lines to leave such gear unattended unless marked as provided in WAC 220-20-010(5). Set lines must be attended at least once every seven days. Set lines must be marked at the surface at each terminal end with a pole, flag, light, radar reflector, and a buoy displaying clear identification of the owner or operator.

(b) Licensing: A food fish set line fishery license is the license required to operate the gear provided for in this section.

(c) Area restriction: It is unlawful to use set line gear in state territorial waters (0-3 miles) within Areas 59A, 59B, 60A-1 and 60A-2 and that portion of Area 58 within the Exclusive Economic Zone.

(3) Bottomfish pots.

(a) It is unlawful for the operator of bottomfish pots to leave such gear unattended unless marked as provided in WAC 220-20-010(5). Bottomfish pots must be attended at least once every seven days. Bottomfish pots set individually must be marked at the surface with a pole and a flag, light, or radar reflector, and a buoy displaying clear identification of the owner. Bottomfish pots laid on a groundline must be marked at the surface at each terminal end of the groundline with a pole and a flag, light, and radar reflector, and a buoy displaying clear identification of the owner or operator.

(b) Licensing: A bottomfish pot fishery license is the license required to operate the gear provided for in this section.

(c) Area restriction: It is unlawful to use bottomfish pots in state territorial waters (0-3 miles) within the catch areas provided for in this section.

(4) Commercial jig gear.

(a) Licensing: A bottomfish jig fishery license is the license required to operate the gear provided for in this section.

(b) Area restriction: It is unlawful to use commercial jig gear in state territorial waters (0-3 miles) within the catch areas provided for in this section.

(5) Troll lines.

(a) Licensing: A bottomfish troll fishery license is the license required to operate the gear provided for in this section.

(b) Area restriction: It is unlawful to use bottomfish troll gear in state territorial waters (0-3 miles) within the catch areas provided for in this section.

(6) Incidental catch.

(a) It is lawful to retain bottomfish taken incidental to any lawful salmon fishery, up to a daily limit of 100 pounds or 30% of all fish on board, whichever is greater. No more than one trip per day provided the bottomfish could be lawfully taken.

(b) It is unlawful to take salmon incidental to any lawful bottomfish fishery.

(c) It is lawful to retain sturgeon taken incidental to any lawful bottomfish fishery, provided the sturgeon could be lawfully taken.

(d) It is unlawful to retain any species of shellfish taken incidental to any lawful bottomfish fishery, except that it is lawful to retain octopus and squid.

220-44-035Highly migratory species fisheries — Possession and landing requirements — Gear restriction. It is unlawful to possess, transport through the waters of the state, or land into any Washington port highly migratory species taken from Marine Fish-Shellfish Management and Catch Reporting Areas 58B, 59A-1, 59A-2, 60A-1, 60A-2, 61, 62, or 63 in violation of any permit or data collection requirements, established by the Pacific Fishery Management Council and published in the Federal Register, Volume 70, No. 27, published February 10, 2005. Therefore, persons must consult the federal regulations, which are incorporated by reference and made a part of chapter 220-44 WAC. Where rules refer to the fishery management area, that area is extended to include Washington state waters coterminous with the Exclusive Economic Zone. A copy of the federal rules may be obtained by contacting Evan Jacoby at 360-902-2930. Except as authorized under the federal rules referenced in this section, it is unlawful to use drift gill net gear in state and offshore waters west of the Bonilla-Tatoosh line, north of the Washington-Oregon boundary, and south of the United States-Canada boundary.

220-44-040Coastal bottomfishing seasons. It is lawful to take, fish for, and possess for commercial purposes bottomfish in coastal waters taken with gear described in WAC 220-44-030 all year in Coastal Marine Fish-Shellfish Management and Catch Reporting Areas 58B, 59A, 59B, and 60A, unless otherwise provided.

220-44-050Coastal bottomfish catch limits. (1) It is unlawful to possess, transport through the waters of the state, or land in any Washington state port bottomfish taken from Marine Fish-Shellfish Management and Catch Reporting Areas 58B, 59A, 59B, 60A, 61, 62, or 63 in excess of the amounts or less than the minimum sizes, or in violation of any gear handling or landing requirement, established by the Pacific Fisheries Management Council and published in the Federal Register, Volume 66, No. 8, published January 11, 2001, except thresher shark are further restricted as provided for in this section. Therefore, persons must consult the federal regulations, which incorporated by reference and made a part of chapter 220-44 WAC. Where rules refer to the fishery management area, that area is extended to include Washington state waters coterminous with the exclusive economic zone. A copy of the federal rules may be obtained by contacting Evan Jacoby at 360-902-2930.

(a) It is unlawful to possess, transport through the waters of the state, or land into any Washington port, walleye pollock taken with trawl gear from Marine Fish-Shellfish Management and Catch Reporting Areas 58B, 59A-1, 59A-2, 60A-1, 60A-2, 61, 62, or 63, except by trawl vessels participating in the directed Pacific whiting fishery and the directed coastal groundfish fishery.

(b) It is unlawful for trawl vessels participating in the directed Pacific whiting and/or the directed coastal groundfish fishery to land incidental catches of walleye pollock greater than forty percent of their total landing by weight, not to exceed ten thousand pounds.

(2) At the time of landing of coastal bottomfish into Washington port, the fish buyer receiving the fish is required to clearly mark on the fish receiving ticket in the space reserved for dealer's use all legally defined trawl gear aboard the vessel at the time of delivery. The three trawl gear types are: Midwater trawl, roller trawl and small foot rope trawl (foot rope less than eight inches in diameter). The notation of the gear type(s) aboard the vessel is required prior to the signing of the fish receiving ticket by the vessel representative.

(3) Vessels engaged in chartered research for National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) may land and sell bottomfish caught during that research without the catch being counted toward any trip or cumulative limit for the participating vessel. Vessels that have been compensated for research work by NMFS with an exempted fishing permit (EFP) to land fish as payment for such research may land and sell fish authorized under the EFP without the catch being counted toward any trip or cumulative limit for the participating vessel. Any bottomfish landed during authorized NMFS research or under the authority of a compensating EFP for past chartered research work must be reported on a separate fish receiving ticket and not included on any fish receiving ticket reporting bottomfish landed as part of any trip or cumulative limit. Bottomfish landed under the authority of NMFS research work or an EFP compensating research with fish must be clearly marked "NMFS Compensation Trip" on the fish receiving ticket in the space reserved for dealer's use. The NMFS scientist in charge must sign the fish receiving ticket in the area reserved for dealer's use if any bottomfish are landed during authorized NMFS research. If the fish are landed under the authority of an EFP as payment for research work, the EFP number must be listed in the dealer's use space.

(4) It is unlawful for an original receiver to receive whiting and whiting by-catch under the authority of an exempted fishing permit (EFP) issued by the National Marine Fisheries Service through the department unless the original receiver has entered into a signed agreement with the department specifying the responsibilities of the original receiver in conjunction with the whiting EFP fishery. Failure to comply with the terms of the agreement shall be cause to remove the original receiver from the list of original receivers allowed to receive unsorted whiting catches from EFP vessels.

(5) It is unlawful to land thresher shark taken by any means from state and offshore waters of the Pacific Ocean north of the Washington-Oregon boundary and south of the United States-Canada boundary, and it is unlawful to land thresher shark taken south of the Washington-Oregon boundary unless each thresher shark landed is accompanied by a minimum of two swordfish.

220-44-080Otter trawl logbook required. It shall be unlawful for any operator of otter trawl gear to fail to possess and maintain a "Washington-Oregon-California Trawl Logbook" while fishing in Coastal Marine Fish-Shellfish Management and Catch Reporting Areas 58B, 59A-1, 59A-2, 59B, 60A-1, 60A-2, 61, 62 and 63. The logbook must be kept aboard the vessel while it is fishing in the above areas, or while having fish aboard that were caught in the above areas. The vessel operator must submit the completed logbook for inspection immediately upon request by authorized department representatives. For each vessel trip, the operator shall record the vessel name and registration number, crew size, departure and return date and time, and buyers of fish landed. For each trawl tow conducted the vessel operator shall record the month and day, time gear was set and retrieved, latitude and longitude fished, depth fished, net type, target species, and estimated weight of species of fish retained. Species or species groups with trip or cumulative limits must be identified separately and cannot be recorded in combination with other species. The department's copies of completed log sheets must be submitted to the department for each month in which fishing activity occurs. The department's copies must be received within ten days following any calendar month in which fishing activity occurred, or within ten days following the termination of commercial fishing activity, whichever occurs first.

220-44-090Far offshore fishery. It is unlawful for any fisher to transport through the waters of the state, or land in any Washington state port, bottomfish taken without the exclusive economic zone (more than 200 miles offshore) except as provided for in this section:

(1) Any fisher may transport bottomfish through the waters of the state or land bottomfish taken without the exclusive economic zone provided:

(a) The fisher has, at least 48 hours prior to participating in the far offshore fishery, notified the department by either writing to the Marine Fish-Shellfish Division, Washington State Fisheries, 48A Devonshire Road, Montesano, WA 98563 or telephoning the department during regular business hours Monday through Friday to (360) 586-6129. The fisher must provide the following information: Vessel name and official number; anticipated fishing dates; anticipated port of landing; and

(b) The fisher has made the vessel available for a hold inspection, if required to do so by the department, prior to departure to participate in the far offshore fishery; and

(c) The fisher has notified the department at least 24 hours prior to landing bottomfish at any Washington state port. The fisher must provide the following information: Port of landing; estimated date and time of landing; estimated species composition and weight of fish aboard.

(2) It is unlawful for any fisher to fish within or land fish taken from within the exclusive economic zone during any trip for which a declaration to participate in the far offshore fishery has been made.

(3) Fishers participating in the far offshore fishery are required to be properly licensed in order to land bottomfish into a Washington state port.

(4) This section does not apply to bottomfish which have been previously landed in another state, territory or country, does not apply to delivery by vessels other than the catcher vessel and does not apply to bottomfish taken in Canadian territorial waters.